John Forbes Memorial Growing In Stature

The John Forbes Memorial, a two-mile flat race to be run Saturday at the Far Hills, New Jersey hunt meet isn't for every horse. The horse needs to be able to handle the grueling distance of two miles and carry as much as 148 pounds. But there are plenty of trainers who believe their horses can handle the test. A race that is getting better every year, the $150,000 race attracted 14 entries, including Thoroughbreds from the stables of Mike Maker, Christophe Clement, Graham Motion and Peter Eurton.

The Forbes Memorial is named in honor of longtime New Jersey-based trainer John Forbes. Forbes's widow, Vicki, is the Thoroughbred Daily News's Director of Customer Service. She will present the trophy to the winning connections.

This will be its third running and once again the race is an interesting handicapping puzzle. There are flat horses trying to prove they can go the distance, there are jumpers trying to prove they are fast enough to beat some decent flat horses and there's an entry from Gordon Elliott, one of the premier jump trainers in Ireland.

McLovin | Sarah Andrew

“The main difference this year is that we bumped the purse from $100,000 to $150,000,” said National Steeplechase Association Director of Racing Bill Gallo. “That ended up being fairly significant because, as you can see from the entries, it attracted a stellar field. I certainly think the additional $50,000 caught their attention and last year might have had an impact because Rodolphe Brisset, a flat trainer, sent in a horse (McLovin) from Kentucky and won it. We did some recruiting, too, talking to some of the flat trainers when we were in Saratoga.”

The 8-5 morning-line favorite is the Graham Motion-trained The Grey Wizard (Ire) (Caravaggio), the winner of this year's GII Belmont Gold Cup Stakes, also a two-mile grass race.

“I think it's a great idea,” Motion said. “My background is in steeplechasing and for me to support them is important. I appreciate the crossover.”

Motion is not taking the race lightly.

“I thought the horse (California Frolic) that won at Monmouth last time is a very good horse,” Motion said. “You've also got Dean Martini, who won the Japan Cup at Laurel last time out on the dirt and is a nice horse. So I don't think it's a gimme by any means. But I imagine he will be the favorite.”

Motion will be riding Parker Hendriks, who is fourth in the National Steeplechase standings.

“Parker has galloped the horse for me and he worked him last Saturday, so he's familiar with the horse,” Motion said. “Some familiarity with how things work is not a bad thing. It's definitely a toss-up (between and jump and flat jockey) but since Parker has been on the horse I thought that was the right way to go.”

John Forbes Stakes | Sarah Andrew

Three others have named flat jockeys, including Jose D'Angelo, who has given the assignment on Gilded Age (Medaglia d'Oro) to Pedro Cotto, Jr. The 5-year-old has never gone beyond a mile-and-three sixteenths.

“He's well-bred to go long and he's much better on the grass,” D'Angelo said. “The distance can help him. It's not an easy spot. There are some quality horses in this race. Pedro fits this horse well and fits his style of running and that's why I named him on the horse. They always say anytime you make it to the starting gate you're in with a chance. Now, for this, there's not even a starting gate.”

Joe Sharp actually named himself to ride Tide of the Sea (English Channel), but reports that the horse will be scratched.

“I was ready to do it,” he said. “Hopefully, he can make this race next year and I will ride him.”

The Far Hills card is topped by the GI American Grand National. It has a purse of $250,000 and is widely considered the most prestigious race on the steeplechase circuit. The 8-5 morning-line favorite is Snap Decision (Hard Spun), who began his career for Shug McGaughey. He's 2-for-3 this year with a win in the GI Iroquois Stakes at Percy Warner. He's going to have to prove that this race is a good fit for him. In the 2023 edition, he was pulled up and in 2022 he lost by 44 lengths.